A Swordsman's Love
by Scott-The Swordsman
Summary: At the Maw Of Tartas, a mysterious boy stows away on The Little Jack. Now he's gotten himself pulled into this wild adventure of thiers. But what's this? Feeling towards a certain hyper, big-chested girl? COMPLETE R&R!
1. A Mysterious Swordsman

During Vyse and Co.'s first visit to the Maw Of Tartas, when they were trying to figure out how to open the seal there, they never knew someone other than the Vuluan soldiers was watching them. It was a fifteen-year-old boy, about 5'8", he had black hair, with bangs that came just over his eyes. He wore a red sleeveless shirt, and tan colored pants, along with some leather boots and gloves. (Think Van from Escaflowne) He sported a sword of sorts, a katana you'd expect to find in Yafutoma. It too, like all of Vyse's party member's weapons, was made with Moonstone.  
  
When the Vuluan soldiers found Vyse and attacked him, the Swordsman watched them from on top of the hill. He was amazed by their fighting skills; he'd never seen anything like them before. He was especially interested in Vyse, there was something about him that appealed to the Swordsman, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He was though, a little afraid of the grumpy old man with the bionic arm. But he knew in his mind that he could defeat him easily by using his agility to overcome the man. But he wasn't about to attack them; he saw that they made quick work of the soldiers, and formed a slight respect for them.  
  
He quickly looked around to finally see a ship, The Little Jack. He was curious as to why those soldiers would attack them, it had to be for more than just trespassing; and he could have sworn he had seen Vyse before, but he couldn't quite say where. So he took his chances and stowed-away on The Little Jack.  
  
He waited until nightfall before he came out of hiding by the ship's lifeboats, but when he saw Vyse sleeping in the nearby hammock, he went right back in. He laid in one of the lifeboats.  
  
"I know I've seen him somewhere." He said to himself, still wondering who they could be. But he figured they would attack him if they found him.  
  
He lay there for quite some time until he was startled by the distinct sound of an arch whale. He sat up; his head darted in all directions, wondering what was going on. He stood up to leave the room, but was knocked right back down into the lifeboat as the ship was shaken by cannon fire. After a while, he felt heat, he opened the doors a slight crack and saw that the ship was on fire. But he remained calm and got back into one of the lifeboats, he knew he couldn't get it out on his own, so he took the risk of being discovered.  
  
He heard the doors open, and he lay in the lifeboat real low. Two girls got into the lifeboat, one with orange hair; the other dressed in odd clothing. He sat up and looked at them, their eyes were wide.  
  
"Who. who are you?!" The redhead exclaimed.  
  
But the hanger doors opened, and the Swordsman watched as the old man went around to the back of the lifeboat. He blinked a few times, his mouth open as the man began pushing the lifeboat out of the hanger.  
  
"Forget about him!" The man exclaimed, "You've got to get out of here!"  
  
"But Capitan!" The redhead responded.  
  
But the man did not answer; he just pushed the lifeboat right out of the hanger. The Swordsman had no idea what was happening, but he was startled to see a huge arch whale, and ships firing at the boat he was just in. He watched as another lifeboat was pushed out, which only had one passenger. He wondered where the old man went.  
  
But then the ships began firing at the other lifeboat.  
  
"Vyse!!!" The two girls called out to the other lifeboat.  
  
The Swordsman figured that was the guy's name; he knew he had heard that name before. Then it hit him. That was Vyse, THE Vyse. The one he had heard about before, the one who had the Vuluan Empire after him. He laughed quietly to himself, but then he was shocked as Vyse's lifeboat was shot down.  
  
The rest was sort of a blur, he never said anything to the girls, and they never said anything to him. But eventually, he awoke to find himself in a bedroom on a ship. But weary, he just lay back down. The one thought that was in his mind was, 'Where is Vyse?'  
  
The two girls woke up with the same thought in their minds. The Capitan of the ship greeted them. Her name was Clara. The two girls explained to Clara their problem, hoping she could help them out.  
  
"You like him, don't you?" Clara asked, smiling slightly.  
  
The two girls both looked away from her, responding with a shy "Umm. yes."  
  
Clara winked and smiled again, "You can always trust your man huh?"  
  
Then another girl ran into the room, she seemed very hyper. She wore a pink and white striped shirt, pink shorts and pink knee-high boots. Her eyes were big and golden-brown, as her hair was just a dark brown.  
  
"How are the two guests? Are they okay?" The little girl asked, obviously very concerned.  
  
Clara turned to her and said, "Yes, they're fine. Why don't you go check on the other guest?"  
  
"Oh right!" The girl responded, "I'll do it right away!" Then she ran out of the room.  
  
"Other guest?" The oddly dressed girl asked herself.  
  
"Oh, that weird guy on the lifeboat! I want to know exactly what he was doing in our lifeboat!" The redhead said.  
  
A few moments later, the Swordsman was awoken to see the little girl. He blinked to focus a few times; it appeared she had been watching over him for a while. But when his eyes fully focused, they became wide. He stared at the young girl, he figured she may have been one or two years younger than he was. But then he looked away.  
  
"Hey, how are you?" The girl asked.  
  
The Swordsman hesitated to answer, ". I'm fine."  
  
"Good, my name's Belle! Oh! I thought you were a goner for a minute there! You were sleeping for so long I mean." The girl said, almost jumping up and down with excitement.  
  
The Swordsman got dizzy trying to follow her movements. He shook his head a few times.  
  
". I said I was fine. Pleased to meet you Belle" He said.  
  
But then Clara's voice was on the talking tube, "Belle, come to the deck and bring the guest with you please."  
  
"Oh!" belle said, seeming surprised, "Come on, we've got to go!"  
  
"Hey. wait." The Swordsman said, but it was too late, she was already long gone.  
  
He went to the deck and leaned against the wall, keeping his distance from the girls. Clara explained that she would drop them off at Nasrad. The two girls he had shown up with seemed pleased, and they hoped they would find Vyse there. But the Swordsman couldn't take his eyes off Belle, but he only looked when he wasn't noticed.  
  
When they had gotten to Nasrad, Clara had given the girls her purse, which contained 5000 gold. They were appreciative, but the Swordsman didn't seem so glad about it. The girls waved to Clara as she flew her airship away, then turned to the Swordsman. He looked back at them.  
  
"What?" He asked, seeming annoyed.  
  
"What do you mean 'what?'" The redhead said, looking a little cross. "You stow away on our ship, don't introduce yourself, and keep quiet all the time and all you can say is 'what?!'"  
  
The Swordsman looked away, scoffing a bit.  
  
"Well. what Aika is trying to say is. we'd appreciate it if you told us your name." The oddly dressed girl said.  
  
The Swordsman made not attempt to even look at them, and responded with ". You tell me your names first."  
  
"Well. umm. I'm Fina, and this is Aika." The oddly dressed girl answered.  
  
"Great." The Swordsman said. "Well, I'm Scott. pleased to meet you."  
  
"Just great!" Aika said, turning to Fina. "Now what are we going to do to with this guy? And how are we going to find Vyse?"  
  
"I. don't know." Fina answered.  
  
"Let me save you the trouble of doing one thing." Scott said as he turned and began walking away. "You're on your own!"  
  
And with that, he left. Aika and Fina still needed to find out a way to go find Vyse though. They eventually came up with the idea to get a job and save up to buy a ship. They went to find a good place to stay, and obvious to most, they stayed at the local inn. They got a tab started for them and got a room there.  
  
"So what shall we do tomorrow?" Fina asked.  
  
"We go and get a job to save up for a ship of course! Then we can go find Vyse!" Aika answered.  
  
"Are you worried about Vyse?"  
  
"Of course. But I know that Vyse can take care of himself, wherever he is."  
  
Fina sighed and turned towards the window, looking up at the red moon that was over the desert.  
  
"Vyse." She said to herself. "I wonder if we're looking at the same moon right now."  
  
Outside the inn, on top of the building next to it, Scott smirked. He was watching Aika and Fina the whole time. Sure he didn't really know them, but he figured they were the type to get them into trouble. Or at least, Aika was.  
  
"How can they be worried so much about Vyse?" He asked himself. "It's obvious they show emotion towards him. I wonder if he knows they do. I get the feeling they see him as much more than just a friend or fellow crewmember. I wonder how he feels about them."  
  
He sighed, looking up at the red moon.  
  
"I wonder what Belle is doing right now." He said to himself.  
  
The next day Aika and Fina managed to find a job at the local Tavern. Scott secretly followed them around to make sure they were okay. He knew how much finding Vyse must have meant to them, so he was ready to protect them at any occasion. It seemed like months since they had all arrived at Nasrad when Aika and Fina had finally gotten enough money to buy a ship.  
  
At that point, Vyse had already gotten to Nasrad. He was with a man named Glider, who Aika and Fina met the very last day they were in Nasrad. On many occasions, Aika and Fina had walked right past Vyse, not expecting him to be around. Little did they know that Vyse had gotten the room next to theirs in the inn. Scott found it quite funny how they wouldn't notice the man they cared so much for.  
  
Aika and Fina finally decided to go look for Vyse, and at the same time, go and find "Daccat's Treasure." Scott stayed behind in Nasrad, knowing they'd be back. At the same time, he noticed Glider and Vyse going to look for Daccat's Treasure as well. Scott couldn't help but laugh. After all that work, they were just going to meet in the same place anyway. He tried picturing Aika and Fina's faces when they found Vyse. It wasn't real funny; he found it quite a tearjerker.  
  
"Oh Vyse, I can't believe we found you!" He said, trying to impersonate Aika.  
  
"Neither can I!" He said again, trying to impersonate Vyse.  
  
He laughed, "Then all the hugs and kisses!" He exclaimed. Laughing so hard he almost fell off the ledge he was sitting on.  
  
But then he sighed. "I wish I could find Belle like that." He said to himself.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------- And that's it for this chapter! ^_^  
  
Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com  
  
Please don't flame me! ^_^; Yes, Scott is a character I made up, and he has my name too. So please, don't bother me about him! 


	2. Escaping From Vulua Again

Scott waited for what seemed life forever for Vyse and Co to get back. He just hung around Nasrad the whole time, hiding himself until they got back. It was odd to him, he had no idea why, but he was concerned for these people. He barely even knew them, yet he was waiting around for them, like a dog for its master.  
  
"Maybe I'll see Belle again." He said to himself.  
  
That must have been it, he thought. He must be doing it so that maybe someday, somehow he could see her again. He felt strongly that it could happen.  
  
After what was almost a whole day, Vyse and Co returned to Nasrad. Scott was somewhat happy to see them, to his surprise. He jumped off of the building he was on, landing right in front of them. They were a bit startled, but it wasn't much of a scare.  
  
"Great, him again." Aika said. "Do you want to be a jerk again, or what?"  
  
"Hmph." Scott responded. "I came to ask a question."  
  
"What exactly did you want to ask us?" Vyse asked, only having met Scott just now.  
  
"I wanted to know if I could tag along with you guys." Scott answered.  
  
Vyse, Fina and Aika all looked at one another. They blinked and looked back at Scott, who was staring right at them, with a sort of pleading look in his eyes.  
  
"Why should we drag you along?" Aika asked sternly.  
  
"I'm a good fighter, and I hope to find someone I met on a ship not too long ago." Scott answered again.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Aika, that's none of our business." Fina said. "He looks trustworthy. maybe we could take him along Vyse?"  
  
"Alright, we'll take him with us." Vyse agreed, making it seem like he was pushed into that decision.  
  
"Thank you." Scott said.  
  
So Vyse and Co decided to head back to the inn. But on the way there, they saw some ships from the Armada. Scott blinked, it was the first time he had actually SEEN a real Vuluan warship. The Armada began bombing Nasrad, blowing almost everything in sight to pieces.  
  
"Quick, we have to get out of here!" Vyse exclaimed as the all turned and ran back towards Glider's ship.  
  
But when they were nearly there, a bomb struck by them, starting a few flames. They had braced themselves, and no one was hit, but they did hear a voice.  
  
"Well hello Fina." It said  
  
Fina looked shocked, everyone was looking towards where the voice came from as a young man emerged from the flames.  
  
"Ramirez!" Fina exclaimed.  
  
Ramirez laughed a bit and ordered Vyse to hand over Fina. Scott had no idea what was going on, but he didn't like that Ramirez guy. Vyse and him were ready to go kick his butt, but Fina stopped them. They blinked at her; she had a worried look on her face.  
  
"No, you mustn't attack him!" She warned. "He is an exceptional warrior, very good at combat. There's no way you could win against him, not now anyway."  
  
"But." Vyse began to try and change her mind.  
  
"I'll be fine." She said, interrupting him.  
  
They agreed to surrender, and were taken to The Vuluan Grand Fortress, where Vyse had already escaped from once. But it didn't look like that was going to happen this time. They were all thrown into jail cells to await their execution. Glider and Vyse were in one cell, Aika in another, and Scott in yet another.  
  
But Vyse wasn't about to give up; he never had and wouldn't want to start now. But he had no idea how to go about it. But Glider's parrot, Willy, flew into the cell, landing on Glider's shoulder.  
  
"What's that tied to his leg? It looks like a note tied on with some wire." Vyse said, reaching out and untying the wire and reading the note.  
  
"Let's see." He began. "Capitan, we will bomb the fortress at midnight for your escape. Signed by your crew Glider."  
  
"I knew they'd be around." Glider said, laughing a bit. "It wouldn't be the first time my crew has had to break me out of prison. They know the routine."  
  
"That's great Glider, but how are we supposed to get out of this cell?"  
  
"There was a wire tied around the note for a reason." Glider answered as he took the wire and straightened it out.  
  
Vyse watched for a bit as Glider began picking the lock on the cell door, then he looked at the back of the note.  
  
"Hey Glider, there's something on the back here." Vyse said, reading it to himself.  
  
"Oh yeah? What is it?" Glider asked.  
  
Vyse held back from laughing as he read it out loud to Glider.  
  
"Glider my love, I'm coming to get you out too. You'll be back in my arms in no time. Signed by Clara" Vyse read it to him. "And there's lipstick marks at the bottom."  
  
Glider stood up, a joking look on his face.  
  
"Hey Vyse, we don't really need to get out of here. do we?" Glider asked.  
  
"Would you rather stay in prison and be executed?"  
  
"Hmm. execution, or Clara. execution, or Clara. tough choice. Ah, oh well."  
  
Glider then opened the door and gathered their weapons. Then they set off to find the others. They found Scott's cell, not too far away from their own, but it was open, and there was a guard knocked out. That meant that Scott had already escaped. But he didn't go after Vyse and the others. He just headed to leave.  
  
"Such a nice guy huh?" Glider said sarcastically.  
  
So they left again, to go get Aika. They beat up a few guards for the cellblock key and went and fought Virgo. Then they took her and went looking for Fina. It wasn't easy; the guards were all over the place. And even Ramirez was looking for them.  
  
After a lot of fighting and searching, the found Fina, and began to head out of the place. They still hadn't seen Scott, but they knew he must have been ok. They ran all the way to an elevator, after blowing up a cannon on the fortress wall. Everything as going good until they ran into this big tank, they fought with it for quite some time. When they eventually won though, the alarm went off.  
  
"Oh no, the alarm." Glider said, stating the obvious.  
  
"We have to get out of here, or they'll be guards all over us!" Vyse said.  
  
But then they heard a voice come from the floor above them.  
  
"Come up here on the elevator!" It said.  
  
"Vyse, someone is telling us to go onto the elevator! But I can't see who it is! What if it's a trap?" Aika asked, looking at Vyse.  
  
"We don't have a choice! Lets take out chances and hop on!" Vyse responded.  
  
They all got onto the elevator and went up. At the top they saw a young boy. and Scott!  
  
"Can't leave you alone for two seconds, can I?" Scott said, putting his hands on his hips.  
  
Aika stuck her tongue out at him.  
  
He scoffed again.  
  
"Scott and. who might you be?" Glider asked.  
  
The young man smiled, "My name is Enrique." He answered.  
  
"What? Enrique? The prince of Vulua! Heir to the throne?!"  
  
"Yes, that's me. Now hurry, I'll help you escape."  
  
Enrique led them to a big flagship, and let them inside it. It was hard for Vyse to just start trusting him. After all, he WAS the prince of Vulua. the people that hated him. But the others didn't have much of a problem with him. The inside of the ship was breathtaking to Vyse though. They all looked around, taking some time. No one really expected to find them in a flagship.  
  
"This is The Delfinus, the most powerful ship in the Armada fleet, and my personal flagship." Enrique said.  
  
"Wow." The others said in awe.  
  
"Hey, Enrique." Vyse said to get his attention. "Why are you helping us escape, aren't you supposed to be on the Valuan's side?"  
  
"Yes, I am supposed to." Enrique answered. "But Vulua is going down a dark road. They're trying to take over the world by force so they can be unopposed. I happen to disagree with how my mother is dealing with things. So I have one favor to ask of you Vyse."  
  
"And.?"  
  
"I want you to take this ship, and take me with it."  
  
"Huh? Wait a minute."  
  
"I feel that if I join your crew, then I may have a chance of changing the Vuluan Empire. To help them see the error of their ways, and hopefully bring them to their senses. And you Vyse are one of the only people who have ever dared to stand against Vulua, to stand against the Armada. I believe your intensions are as good as my own. So please, take me with you as part of your crew! I'll even be a hostage if I have to."  
  
"Alright," Vyse said. "You can join my crew. But the Blue Rouges. don't take hostages. If you're going to join, you'll join as a Blue Rouge."  
  
"Fine." Enrique said.  
  
So Vyse started up The Delfinus and began to sail his way out of The Grand Fortress. They were almost out, but when they reached the gate, they noticed it was closed. All hope almost seemed lost.  
  
"Hey Vyse. That cannon I blew up has made a weak spot in the gate." Glider said.  
  
"Hey yeah!" Aika said. "We just need to get through there."  
  
"Alright, we need to blow the hole open, and we can just sail right through!" Vyse proclaimed.  
  
"Vyse, I should tell you now that The Delfinus is equipped with the strongest weapon in all of Vulua." Enrique said. "It's called the 'Moonstone Cannon.' Until recently, it was a weapon in development by De Loco. But it's been completed and added to the Delfinus, making it have almost the strongest firepower in the whole Armada fleet. And it's still as fast as a cruiser and as sturdy as a warship."  
  
"So one blast from the Moonstone Cannon should do it then!"  
  
"Yes, it should, but it takes a lot of power."  
  
So they defended against the gate's cannons and saved up for the Moonstone Cannon. Once they had enough energy, Vyse didn't hesitate to push the big red button.  
  
"Moonstone Cannon. Fire!" Vyse commanded.  
  
And with that the cannon stored its energy, and then shot a big pinkish beam at the wall, in the weak area. That beam was apparently pure concentrated Moonstone energy, very powerful indeed, more powerful than any weapon able to be equipped to a ship.  
  
They blew a big gaping hole right through the gate, big enough for The Delfinus to fit through. And they flew right through it, escaping Vulua for the second consecutive time.  
  
Once they were far away from the Vuluan Airspace, they were given time to look around The Delfinus. Vyse found he needed to recruit quite a few crewmembers. A cook, a helmsman, a lookout, some sailors, and a few other positions needed to be filled. Then Glider mentioned he heard a noise from in the bridge. Vyse checked one of the storage places, only to find. Marco! A boy he met in Vulua a long time ago. Vyse recruited him as a "sailor." Or in other words, a worker, Marco immediately began working by "swabbing the deck."  
  
Glider told Vyse that he was going to leave again. He had his own ship to take care of. He also gave him three pieces of advice. First, he needed crewmembers, and then he'd need a base so the crew could rest once in a while. And lastly, that Vyse never give up, no matter what. Then he just left, running really. Running from. you guessed it, Clara. And Clara went after him.  
  
They had the perfect place to start a base. The deserted island that Vyse was stranded on, it was called Crescent Isle. But first they started towards Sailor's island, to get some crewmembers. Vyse ended up recruiting a cook (Polly), a helmsman (Lawrence), and a delegate (Pinta). Then Vyse went back home and took in a dog named Pow to be a jester. of sorts. Then he headed towards Crescent Isle.  
  
Scott stood out at the very edge of the deck (is that the bow? Starboard? Or what?) Looking at the clouds as they zoomed by. He was alone, with the exception of Marco and Enrique. He had a slight smile on his face.  
  
"Belle." He said to himself. "I hope you're doing as well as I am."  
  
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Ba-bam! ^_^ Heh. that's it for this one too. Not bad if I do say so myself.  
  
Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com 


	3. Reunited At Last

The crew had eventually reached Crescent Isle. It was still the way Vyse remembered it, empty. Well, almost empty, except for the two men that were there, one tall with a long beard, one short with a shorter beard. They introduced themselves as Brabham and Izmael, an engineer and a builder. Apparently, Glider had told them about Vyse, and they offered to upgrade The Delfinus, and to make a base. All for the total of. 100,000 gold! Aika and Fina almost had to scrape poor Vyse's jaw off the ground. One hundred thousand gold was not easy to come by. Scott agreed to stay behind after Vyse scrounged up the doh to pay the two geezers, while Vyse and Co went off to find a way to Yafutoma.  
  
And there he was, for many days he helped Izmael build the base. And every night, he sat out on the peak of the island, looking out into the ocean. Constantly thinking about Belle. It was hard for him to take his mind off her. Sure she was younger than he was, but she was quite. developed for someone her age.  
  
"Her body didn't have so many curves as most women my age." He said to himself. "She was just so cheerful. How does she do that?"  
  
Scott sat there, thinking. Izmael built him a sleeping quarter, but he never used it. He would always slept in a tree somewhere in the forest. Where he would always look up at the red moon.  
  
"Please." He thought. "Please moons, bring her back to me."  
  
"I wish we were looking at the same moon right now." He said to himself, just like Fina had said.  
  
Little did he know, she was. Clara's ship was heading towards Crescent Isle, to drop Belle and her friends off so they could be gunners on Vyse's new ship. Belle was standing out on the deck with her friends, just staring at the red moon.  
  
"Alright, tell me," One of her friends said. "Have wither of you seen and dreamy guys around? Belle?"  
  
Belle just sighed, a small smile on her face.  
  
"I wonder where he went. I wonder who he was." She thought to herself.  
  
"Belle?" He friend asked, waving a hand in front of her face, trying to get her attention. "Earth to Belle? Hello?"  
  
But she was caught in her own fantasy.  
  
Not long after that, Belle had gotten to Crescent Isle, but Scott never noticed. He was asleep the whole time Clara's ship was there. It wasn't long after that, which Vyse came back and the base was all finished. He even came back with more crewmembers. Another builder (Kirala), another cook (Urala), another sailor (Robinson), another jester (Merida), another delegate (Moegi), another helmsman (Don), another engineer (Hans), and a lookout (Tikataka). They were all mostly from Yafutoma, some were from Ixa`taka, and Don was from Esparanza. Scott was happy (in his own little way) to see all the people. He was right at the docks to greet them all. But he was distracted as he saw Belle. He wanted to run over to her and hug her. But of course, that would have been too forward. Instead, he kept his distance, as much as he liked Belle, she still needed to earn his trust.  
  
He was happy to find out that Vyse hired her as a gunner. Though he didn't really see her as the type to be a gunner in the first place. But he was ready to support her every step of the way. All in due time of course. But when he found out that Vyse was taking her with him on The Delfinus, he helped himself aboard.  
  
They were heading towards "The Land Of Ice" under the purple moon. Everyone had one heard of that place, but never actually seen it with their own eyes.  
  
"I don't know." Scott said, walking towards the deck with Aika. "I mean can we really find it?"  
  
"Sure! Vyse has sailed around the world before, not too long ago. Finding a big chunk of ice won't be as hard as that!" Aika responded.  
  
Scott laughed a bit, opening the door to the deck, letting Aika through first. He was a man who followed Enrique's code on how to treat a woman after all. When he stepped out, he looked around. It wasn't so bad, just getting gradually colder out there. But he heard a big thud and suddenly got a very large amount of pain in his foot. He looked down to see that a cannon ball had been dropped on his foot. He sort of stared at it for a minute, like the pain hadn't gotten to him right away. Then he pulled his foot out from under it, holding it and hopping around.  
  
"Ow ow ow ow! Damn it, that hurts!" He yelled, getting all the frustration out.  
  
"Oh! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean it, it was an accident!" He heard Belle say.  
  
He slowly let go of his foot and brought it back down on the deck. It was throbbing with pain, cannon balls are heavy you know. (How heavy exactly?) He looked down at Belle, who was still apologizing. Now, if she were someone else, he would have turned him or her around, bent him or her over and gave him or her a swift kick in the butt.  
  
"Please forgive me, I'm such a clutz!" Belle said, bowing in apology over and over again.  
  
Scott blinked, trying to follow her movements again. He shook his head a few times, but it was no use. He got dizzy, his eyes were spinning, and he fell backwards onto the deck. Belle looked at him and immediately began helping him up.  
  
"Oooh no! I'm sorry again, oh, you must hate me now." She said, in apology, yet again.  
  
He stood up with her help, and shook his head again.  
  
"It's alright Belle, honest, you can stop apologizing now!" He said in sort of a beg.  
  
"Yay! Thank you! Yay yay yay!" Belle exclaimed, jumping up and down real fast.  
  
Scott arched a brow, watching her for a minute, then put his hands on her shoulders and stopped her.  
  
"Anymore jumping and you'll dent the deck." Scott laughed a bit.  
  
Belle sighed, now being calm. She looked back up at Scott again.  
  
"What's your name anyway?" She asked, hiding the fact that she really REALLY wanted to know.  
  
"Oh. it's Scott."  
  
"Scott." She thought, staring into space for a minute.  
  
"Uh, hello?" Scott said, blinking a few times. "Earth to Belle, hello? Belle?"  
  
"Oh sorry." Belle said, snapping out of it. "I just think it's a real nice name. That's all."  
  
"Well, thanks." Scott said, a little sheepishly.  
  
But then they looked over at Aika, who was laughing non-stop. Scott narrowed his eyes, and Belle giggled a bit. Scott looked at Belle out of the corner of his eye. The smile on her face made a slight smile appear on the corners of his lips.  
  
But The Delfinus suddenly slowed down, just quick enough to make Belle lose her balance. Scott caught her and kept her from falling, all the while looking off the side to see what it was. It appeared to be some huge spider, a monster flying in the air. Everyone began to run back into The Delfinus, but Belle tripped and fell. She got up to her hands and knees and looked at the monster. He eyes widened as an attack from it was coming straight for her. Scott noticed this and ran back to her, diving at her and knocking her out of the way. There was a big explosion at the area it hit, they looked back to see a big smoking dent in the ship. They blinked and looked at each other, then panicked and ran full-speed back into the Delfinus.  
  
After Vyse had defeated the big spider. thing. Everyone went back to his or her normal business. But Scott decided to help Belle with the cannon balls. He figured he'd make sure she didn't drop any on anyone else's feet. She looked over at him and smiled.  
  
"Thanks for saving me before." She said, though she sounded shy at that moment.  
  
"Ah, no problem." Scott said, smiling back at her. "I wasn't gonna let you, of all people, just get hit with some sort of freak explosive. You're just a bit too special"  
  
Scott then blinked when he heard her friends go "Ooooh." He narrowed his eyes in an annoyed fashion. Belle was blushing furiously, but looked away from everyone as she continued working on the cannon balls.  
  
It was a while until Vyse and Co got out of the Ruins in The Land Of Ice. Then they began sailing back to Crescent Isle again. All this moving back and forth was causing Osmar (merchant) to get furious. But all the others didn't seem to mind at all. Vyse, Aika, Fina and Enrique certainly didn't. They got to do all the adventuring. And Scott figured, the more time with Belle, the better. But he also found himself gradually getting closer to the rest of the crew too. He found he could actually talk to Vyse, Aika, or even Fina without hesitating anymore. They had truly earned his trust, and to him, he had earned their trust as well. He even got to fight some battles and help Vyse and Co out most of the time then. It was the best time he ever had.  
  
When they got back, Vyse, Aika, Fina and Enrique went to have a meeting. Scott stayed with Belle at her shop, standing across the room from her. Her friends always looked over at him and then at Belle. Then they'd giggle and look away. It annoyed Scott a bit, but he noticed it wasn't making Belle feel very happy. So he watched for the next time they turned and looked at him.  
  
"Something funny?" He asked when they looked at him.  
  
"Um, no." They both answered at the same time.  
  
"Does my being around Belle amuse you?" He asked again.  
  
"Umm, uhh." The girls stuttered.  
  
Belle giggled, "Leave them alone Scott."  
  
Scott turned, facing Belle and chuckled, "If you say so."  
  
"Now help me make the cannon balls so we can blow away the Vuluans." Belle ordered.  
  
"But Belle, last I checked." Scott tried to explain that they weren't going after the Vuluans.  
  
"Pleeeease?"  
  
"Hmm. how can I resist those eyes? Alright, fine."  
  
"Yeah! Thanks!" Belle said, jumping up and down really fast.  
  
Scott watched her again, then got dizzy, and then fell over.  
  
So Scott went along with Vyse and Co to The Maw Of Tartas, merely because Belle was going too. Though she was really disappointed that they weren't going to blast away the Vuluans, he was happy, only because he got to spend even more time with her. And he really wanted to help defeat the Gigas if the occasion came by.  
  
They successfully defeated the Yellow Gigas, and celebrated a little. Then headed back to Crescent Isle to do more planning. They found that they had to retrieve Fina's old ship from "Old Sky" way below the clouds. And that wasn't going to be easy. No one had ever been down in "Old Sky." Most say it's completely dead, and very muddy. But they needed to be able to get down there, and Enrique said that De Loco was going to build a ship that could make it. So they decided to steal the plans.  
  
This time Scott and Belle waited behind at the island until Vyse and Co got back.  
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------- Whoo-whee! I love writing this! And to think, I'm using this as an excuse to get on the computer! Yeah Dad. this is "homework." _  
  
Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com 


	4. The End Is Near

Scott and Belle decided to help the builders remodel the Tavern, and build a fountain. Scott helped Izmael remodel the Tavern, while Belle busied herself helping Kirala with building the fountain. But with all the work that had to be done, they were beginning to wonder how Izmael and Kirala always managed to do it themselves so quickly. But as usual, Scott was a little distracted, always looking over at Belle, practically not working at all.  
  
But he snapped out of it when Izmael accidentally hit him with a plank of wood when he was turning around. Of course, since Izmael was so short, the plank only hit Scott in the back.  
  
"Hey watch it!" Scott said as he jumped forwards.  
  
"I was tellin' you to get out of the way." Izmael said. "But you were just gone, so I had to give you a wake up call!"  
  
Grumbling he got back to work, but it seemed like he had just started. Kirala and Belle were done their project far before Scott and Izmael finished theirs. Izmael blamed it on Scott, and well, it was actually Scott's fault. So Belle went and helped them out too. Setting up planks, moving furniture, even creating menus. Time seemed to fly by for Scott, because then he could work, and look at Belle at the same time! He barely noticed anything else.  
  
It was a day and a half after Vyse and Co left for Drangal Island. They did come back for a day, but they had left again to actually go to Old Sky. So again, Scott and Belle were left to themselves, and without work too. They just busied themselves with the day-to-day things. Feeding the chickens, cleaning their own spaces, and all that other stuff. It was pretty boring, so Scott usually trained to pass the time. He figured his blade was getting rusty anyway. And every time he did, Belle would watch, and very closely too. He usually would've minded an audience, but of course she was Belle, and she seemed to watch every singe move he made. It sort of made him proud that someone would watch him, someone interested anyway. She'd compliment him on how well he could do his swords-play, and she even told him how she wished she could do something as amazing. Now Scott had been called a fair fighter before, but never amazing, so he agreed to teach her a thing or two. Of course, she got really excited about the idea, and was unable to contain her excitement. So she vented the only way she knew how, by jumping up and down. And again, this made Scott dizzy and he fell over.  
  
The next night, Scott was going to try and help her learn the very least, at least. It made him feel, well, important. Maybe it was his ego getting the better of him, but he didn't mind of course. He unsheathed his katana and handed it to Belle. She blinked a few times, gazing at it, then glanced back at Scott.  
  
"Come on," He said. "It's alright. It isn't gonna bite or anything."  
  
"But." She began. "But it's yours."  
  
"And your point is?" He asked, rhetorically, smiling reassuringly.  
  
She giggled and took it by the hilt, holding it a little uneasy. "What am I supposed to do with it?" She asked.  
  
Scott smiled, he had never asked any questions about how to handle a blade. Partially because he had to learn on his own. But being the nice guy that he was, he moved around behind her and wrapped his arms around her, placing his hands over hers. He moved her hands into the right position on the handle and helped her grip it correctly.  
  
All the while, she was in heaven. Absent-mindedly, she rested her head on the spot where his shoulder met his collarbone, sighing contently, closing her eyes. He blinked a few times and looked down at her, smiling a bit. But then he realized what he was supposed to be doing.  
  
"Oops." He thought to himself.  
  
"As I was saying!" He said, quite loudly. "This is how you are supposed to hold it."  
  
Belle's eyes shot open in surprise, and she jumped a bit. But she calmed down quickly, closing her eyes again, a slight blush bringing a shade of pink to her cheeks.  
  
"Oh, yeah, I see that." She said quietly.  
  
"Hmmm. It looked like you took the first ship out of reality." Scott said, laughing a bit.  
  
She giggled again, blushing deeper. "I'm sorry, I just had something on my mind."  
  
"Uh, Belle?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Well, I-"  
  
Just then, a cannon ball hit not too far away from them. They gasped and Scott took his hands off her, taking his sword back from her in a hurry. They turned and looked up into the sky, they were shocked. It was the Armada, they had managed to find Vyse's base, and were attacking it. Scott took Belle's hand and quickly led her to the cave as a safe spot. They heard a bundle of cannons fire off, and when they turned to see what was happening, a shower of cannonballs rained onto the island, destroying the fountain and putting large holes in the buildings. All the others who were also left behind had already taken refuge in the hanger, so Scott and Belle hurried to the hanger as well. All they heard for the next few minutes was cannon fire.  
  
Just at that moment, Vyse and Co had gotten back to Crescent Isle. Enrique was no longer with them; he had left to go warn his mother of Lord Galcian, commander of the Armada's, treason.  
  
"It's the Armada!" Vyse exclaimed, pointing out the obvious. "How did they find our base?"  
  
"I don't know, but we have to stop them or they'll burn it to the ground!" Aika said.  
  
They unloaded at the flagpole. Fina's flag had been torn and burned in the mayhem. All the buildings in sight were reduced to rubble. Vyse was furious; all they worked for was now destroyed. So he hurried towards the base, when a group of assassins stopped them. They began a small battle, Vyse was hitting each of them with a barrage of cutlass attacks, while Fina and Aika were defending from whatever hits they took.  
  
The last assassin was about to cast a spell on the group, when Scott came charging out of the cave, his katana drawn. He hit the assassin with all his fury, hitting him time after time after time with the precision of a samurai. The assassin was easily defeated. But they couldn't rest, as Ramirez appeared.  
  
"Ramirez! How did you find our base?" Vyse asked, as angry as ever.  
  
"Ha, when you left Dangral Island, a small scout ship followed you all the way here." Ramirez answered, smirking a bit.  
  
"You'll pay for this!" Vyse said through gritted teeth.  
  
"Don't be foolish. Now hand over the Moon Crystals and I'll spare your lives as well as this ruin of an Air Pirate Base."  
  
"No way!" Aika exclaimed.  
  
"You'll have to kill us! There's no way I'm just going to hand them over to you now!" Vyse replied.  
  
"You'll regret that decision." Ramirez said as he drew his sword.  
  
Vyse and Co already had their weapons out, ready to keep those Moon Crystals away from Ramirez at all costs. They knew Ramirez was very skilled, but there's no way Vyse was going to give up.  
  
"There is light." Ramirez said, running his hand down his face. "And there is darkness."  
  
The whole world seemed to go pitch black. No one could see anything around himself or herself.  
  
"What's happening? Where'd he go?" Scott asked, looking around, confused.  
  
They all heard Ramirez's voice say "Sword of the dark moon." They all blinked, trying to take a stab at what direction it had come from. But they suddenly felt excruciating pain, as if a sword's blade had been skewered right through their guts. It was followed by four or five more doses of the same feeling, the last one more painful than all the others. It had quickly brought Vyse and Co down to their hands and knees, it was just too much for them to handle.  
  
They were helpless, unable to keep Ramirez from taking the Moon Crystals. But they only had the Red, Green, Blue, Purple, and Yellow. Ramirez still needed to get the Silver Crystal. But he claimed that the only reason they needed Fina was to get the Silver Moon Crystal, and began to withdraw a piece of it out of her body. It was going to kill her; all they could do though, was watch. Ramirez had then revealed a lot about the Rains Of Destruction, and the truth about the Silvites. Everything began to make sense to Scott now; he knew this was much more than some silly adventure.  
  
But before Ramirez could get the crystal from Fina, a cannon ball came close to hitting him directly, causing him to lose his concentration and let Fina go. Vyse and Co all looked up to see none other than Glider!  
  
"Good thing that guy's long winded." Glider said, smirking.  
  
"What a bother." Ramirez said, annoyed. "No matter, I'll get the Silver Crystal yet!"  
  
And with that, he disappeared. Vyse and Co were left alone on the island.  
  
"This is horrible." Fina said weakly.  
  
"What are we gonna do Vyse? Ramirez just walked off with all of our Moon Crystals!" Aika said, pointing out the obvious again.  
  
"He was a great fighter." Scott said. "Even I couldn't follow him."  
  
"I'm not going to give up!" Vyse proclaimed, which brought a slight smile to their faces. "Ramirez still needs the last Moon Crystal right? If we could just beat him to it, then he won't be able to call The Rains Of Destruction!"  
  
"Yes, that's right." Fina said.  
  
"And we're gonna do it!" Scott proclaimed.  
  
"That's the way!" Vyse said. "But right now, we have to try and get the island back together. We'll do it first thing tomorrow morning."  
  
So the next they, they got started on clearing all the rubble. It was hard work, but everyone was helping. Glider, Clara, Belle, Belle's friends, Izmael, Brabham, Lawrence, Don, Polly, Robinson, Pinta, Marco, Hans, Pow, Tikatika, Merida, Ozman, Kirala, Urala, Moegi, Vyse, Aika, and even Scott were working like bees all day. But no one had seen Fina all day, she wasn't helping, all of the events that happened the day before must have gotten to her.  
  
"Vyse, Fina has been in the meeting room all day. Maybe you should go talk to her." Aika said.  
  
"I can't possibly imagine what she's going through. Alright, I should go talk to her, it's the least I could do." Vyse said, heading up to the meeting room.  
  
He knocked on the door. "Hey Fina, it's me Vyse."  
  
Fina looked at the door, "Oh, Vyse."  
  
"I know that everything that happened yesterday must be hard on you, but I think you should come down." Vyse said to the door.  
  
"I'm sorry Vyse, but I'd rather be left alone right now." She responded.  
  
"I understand."  
  
He turned and left her alone. She walked over to the window and looked down at everyone, they were all working hard.  
  
"Hey, I'm a guest here! Why do I have to do this work?" Glider complained.  
  
"Quit your whining, I'm helping too you know!" Clara scolded.  
  
Everyone was working to pick a big huge block of stone that came off one of the building. A few others were clearing the smaller pieces out, all standing in a line, passing them to each other. And a small mount were chasing the chickens around, trying to gather them up again. Belle was chasing after a chicken, and accidentally ran into Kirala, a head-to-head collision. She fell back onto the ground.  
  
"I'm sooo tired!" She complained.  
  
"They're going too fast!" Lawrence exclaimed. "Somebody cast a spell or something!"  
  
The rest of the day pretty much went like that. Fina eventually came out of the meeting room and walked over to Vyse.  
  
"Um, Vyse." She said. "Do you actually think we can stop Ramirez?"  
  
"Of course we will!" Vyse responded, smiling at her. "He's up against The Blue Rouges!"  
  
Vyse then gathered Aika, Fina and Scott and went and boarded Fina's ship. Heading off into the sky, towards The Silver Civilization.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------- Hmm. the next chapter is going to be a tough one. u.u oh well, I'll make due!  
  
Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com 


	5. The Final Crystal

"Alright everyone." Fina said. "I'm going to increase our speed, is that alright?"  
  
"Go as fast as you want Fina, we'll be fine." Aika responded.  
  
So she picked up speed, gradually going higher and higher. Until she was going higher than any Yafutomian ship could ever hope to go. The others looked around in awe, never before had they been so high up in their lives.  
  
"You're finally going to see what lies beyond the sunset Vyse." Fina said calmly as they broke through the clouds.  
  
Although the sun was just setting before they went into the clouds, it was a clear black sky with many stars that were visible in it above the clouds. But when they looked down, they saw the clouds. Could it be, that they had gone beyond the clouds? We'd call it outer space, but they called it "The Silver Civilization."  
  
"Wow." Vyse said. "This is beyond the sunset?"  
  
"This is amazing." Scott said, still clearly shocked by the stunning sight.  
  
"What's that Fina?" Aika asked, pointing to a small metal structure.  
  
"That is The Silver Shrine. It's where I grew up." Fina answered, going full speed towards it.  
  
They docked at The Silver Shrine, and it was certainly a sight to behold. Though it seemed that they were all upside down. So they all quickly preceded to a beam of light, which teleported them to the inside of the shrine. It was almost more breathtaking than the outside. It looked like a big maze, leading up to a lone room in the center.  
  
"We want to get up there." Fina said. "That's where the Elders are."  
  
So, they began what would have been a long venture towards the center room, if Fina weren't guiding them. It made Scott dizzy, all the twists and turns, and going upside down. Sometimes he didn't know whether they were straight, or sideways. (As you can see, he gets confused easily.) There were no monsters around, it seemed that this was going to be the easiest Moon Crystal of them all.  
  
When they reached the center room, Vyse, Aika and Scott were again amazed by the look of the room. But it was creepy to see old people behind a window, looking right at them.  
  
"Fina, you've returned." One of them said. "Was your mission a success?"  
  
(A/N: I'm not entirely sure how this part goes, so stay with me.)  
  
"Not yet Elders. Ramirez came and took the Moon Crystals from us. We had all but the Silver Crystal." Fina informed them.  
  
"Ramirez!" One of the other Elders exclaimed. "He's turned has he?"  
  
"When we lost touch with him, we figured something was wrong." Another said. "But knowing now that he has turned, it's grave news."  
  
"I brought these Sky-Dwellers with me Elders. They've helped me since the beginning. I've learned to trust them." Fina said.  
  
"That's nice to know Fina. But you should send them back, they have no place in these affairs."  
  
"Yes we do!" Vyse said.  
  
"Silence." The Elder said.  
  
"Elders, I have a question." Fina said. "I want to know the truth. Ramirez told me that you do not care for the Sky-Dwellers, and called The Rains Of Destruction on them that long time ago. Is this true?"  
  
"It seems that you have discovered the truth." The Elder said. "We tried to be rid of the Sky-Dwellers. They were riding on the wave of greed and desire. They were burning alive in the flames they themselves had started! We called down The Rains Of Destruction on them, hoping to rid the world of their presence."  
  
"But why?" Fina said.  
  
"Maybe if I showed you, you would understand."  
  
He transported them to a room. Though it wasn't so much of a room, more like a vast nothing. There seemed to be no limits, no gravity. It was just like outer space, except for the beautiful blue dancing around them. They were floating, weightless with no gravity, as said before. Images of The Rains Of Destruction appeared before their eyes, and the Elder explained that they had to get rid of the Sky-Dwellers, or they would have destroyed the world anyway. They said they used the Silver Gigas, Zelos, to do it.  
  
Then they were transported back to the Chamber Of The Elders.  
  
"That is why we must gather the crystals again. To finally be rid of the Sky-Dwellers, for good this time." The Elder said.  
  
"You mean they used Fina?" Aika asked, confused.  
  
"Who do you think you are?" Vyse said.  
  
Tears welled up in Fina's eyes. "You have no idea what you're talking about!" She exclaimed. "Not all Sky-Dwellers are like that! There are people like Vyse who stand out from the rest. People who will do things to make the world better, against all odds, and never give up!"  
  
As the Elders pondered what she had just said, Ramirez appeared in the Chamber.  
  
"Ramirez!" The Elders exclaimed. "What have you done? Why did you abandon your mission?"  
  
"Because I've found a new leader, one with a better vision of the world!" Ramirez said as he drew his sword and slashed at the Elder.  
  
The Elder's plane of glass shattered, and he fell to the ground, dead. Vyse and Co were shocked, and Ramirez immediately drew a piece of the Silver Moon Crystal out of the Elder.  
  
"I thought I'd do it the easier way." He said, and then disappeared.  
  
Fina kneeled by the deceased Elder, crying a little. But the Elders to hold not to cry, she was right. The Rains Of Destruction were too dangerous, and now Galcian was going to use it to rule the world. They said it was up to her to stop him. They teleported them back outside, and they headed back to Crescent Isle.  
  
After a quick and short meeting, they decided to go to Dangral Island and take Galcian's elevator down to Old Sky and beat him to the lost continent of Soltis, before he could revive Zelos.  
  
With little to no hesitation they headed straight for the island. Going the same way they did the last time they were there. But this being the first time that Scott had ever been there, he had to follow behind everyone else. Until they got to the lift leading to the elevator, the path seemed obvious at that point. They started it up and headed downwards. But somehow, Virgo managed to catch up to them.  
  
(A/N: Again, I have no idea how the fight here begins, so yeah.)  
  
He challenged them to one last fight. And Vyse accepted he didn't have much of a choice anyway. The only difference between this time and the last time is that Virgo had a big cannon with him.  
  
"Uh oh." Scott said. "One blast with that and we'll be obliterated!"  
  
"Not today, it's time you learned how to use 'Prophecy!'" Vyse said.  
  
It used all their energy, but they managed to use "Prophecy."  
  
Vyse: In dire need.  
  
Aika: We call for.  
  
Scott: The power.  
  
Fina: Of the ancients!  
  
Vyse: To battle our foe!  
  
It wasn't exactly positive that it happened, but the gods might have heard their plea. Because the result was a random moon (not one of the colored ones) came crashing down onto Virgo. Yet he survived through it! So they had to do it quite a few times before he finally fell.  
  
He let them off the elevator safely, finally accepting defeat.  
  
"What are you gonna do now Virgo?" Vyse asked once they reached the bottom.  
  
"I'm not sure." Virgo responded. "Maybe I'll become an Air Pirate, like you guys."  
  
"That's a good idea." Vyse said.  
  
"Well Red, I guess this is where we say goodbye." Virgo said, looking at Aika.  
  
"Well gee, maybe if you didn't come on so strong, you might have been appealing." Aika said.  
  
"Nah. I say that the better man should keep the woman. Vyse beat me fair and square. I've always thought no one other than Lord Galcian could best me. Galcian and Ramirez are down below, good luck kid."  
  
"Hey thanks!" Vyse said.  
  
"As long as there's beautiful women out there, I'll keep fighting." Virgo said, as he started the elevator and left.  
  
Vyse and Co went into a room that appeared to be the elevator shaft. They made their way to the elevator and started it up.  
  
"So this is supposed to lead to Soltis?" Scott asked, looking at Fina.  
  
"Yes, the lost continent." Fina answered.  
  
When they got to the bottom, Soltis was no different than the Silver Shrine. It looked as if it were in space, though it was actually way below on the ground. And just as the Silver Shrine, it looked highly advanced in it's technology. It had teleports and an odd core. It was certainly something to see.  
  
They quickly made their way to Zelos's chamber, only to find that Ramirez and Galcian were already there, trying to awaken the Silver Gigas. They were in the center of the room; they had placed all the Moon Crystals on pedestals surrounding a sphere of energy. Fina knew it must have been Zelos's container, but she didn't see a way of stopping them from awakening it.  
  
"Ramirez, don't!" She called out.  
  
"It took you long enough to get here." Galcian said, looking towards Vyse. "We were about to raise the Silver Gigas, Zelos. Did you come to watch the show?"  
  
"Oh and what a show it will be." Ramirez said. "But I doubt you'll live long enough to see it."  
  
As if on cue, a sentinel of sorts appeared. It was called "Eliminator" unknown to the others. It was almost exactly like the one Aika and Fina had fought on Shrine Island. But they knew this one had to be much stronger.  
  
Vyse and Co attacked it with all their might, trying to give as much damage as they could to it. But it did a target search, so Vyse and Aika braced themselves. Fina, knowing that Vyse and Aika knew what they were doing, defended too. But Scott had no idea what they were thinking, so he continued to attack it. The sentinel unleashed a large and powerful beam at them, Vyse, Aika and Fina weren't hurt much, but Scott was hurt a lot. Almost to the point where he was limping, he used a Sacarum Crystal on himself as the other's attacked. They defended every time it did a target search, and used their strongest attacks otherwise. Repeating the process many times, they eventually defeated it.  
  
"Ha! Was that all you could muster?" Scott said, smirking at the two.  
  
But they had already summoned Zelos, and rising Soltis at that point. Everything was shaking, and debris was falling everywhere. Ramirez and Galcian had simply just, disappeared, while Vyse and Co had to leg it back to The Delfinus. They made it to the lift where they fought Virgo okay, but on the way up, it stalled. It came to a sudden halt, jerking everyone who was on it.  
  
"What in the moons just happened?" Scott asked, turning to Vyse.  
  
"I don't know!" Vyse said, kicking the control panel a few times. "It doesn't have any power!"  
  
"Oh you've got to be kidding me!" Aika said, putting her hands on her hips.  
  
Then the support beam for the lift began to fall apart. The occasion called for some quick thinking, but Vyse came up with a fairly good idea.  
  
"Come on!" He said as he jumped off the now useless lift and onto the beam.  
  
"You can't be serious." Scott said.  
  
"Oh yes I can!" Vyse replied. "We're going to run up the beam!"  
  
"Well, alright." Aika said.  
  
"Come on and get down here!" Vyse called to them.  
  
First, Fina jumped off. And Vyse, knowing she wasn't as acrobatic as Aika or himself, caught her and set her down gently. Aika came second, swiftly jumping of and gracefully landing on her feet like it was nothing. Scott came last, doing a misty-flip off the lift and onto the beam.  
  
"Show off." Aika scoffed.  
  
Scott would have laughed, but he had no time. "Come on! Let's leg it! Double time!" He heard Vyse say. So he ran behind them all, occasionally looking back to see a big piece of the beam collapse right behind his feet. He gulped and prayed to the moons that they wouldn't slow down any more.  
  
They eventually reached the top and jumped off. Vyse came running in last, the beam crumbling under his feet as he ran and jumped off it. Aika positioned herself to catch him, and he landed right on her.  
  
"Oh, ouch." Scott said, looking away.  
  
But there was no time for jokes as they ran all the way back to The Delfinus, from which they watched Soltis rise from the mud of Old Sky and fly right up into the air, getting level with Shrine Island, which seemed to fit right into a spot in Soltis.  
  
They were about to try to get into the island, but a big protective energy dome surrounded it. The Delfinus rammed it's hull right into the dome, bit it didn't even make a crack.  
  
"Damn!" Vyse exclaimed. "What is that?"  
  
"It's a protective dome the Elders used to protect themselves from The Rains Of Destruction. It's impenetrable, and now Galcian is using it to keep us out." Fina said.  
  
"Great! He boasts about being the ruler of the world, and now he hides from us?" Scott said, crossing his arms in disappointment.  
  
"We'll have to head back to Crescent Isle, and try to plan something." Vyse said, shaking his head.  
  
"Well, get on with it then!" Scott exclaimed.  
  
"Don't rush greatness!" Vyse snapped back as he turned and sailed in the direction back to Crescent Isle.  
  
But something made the sky go dark, shaking the lands almost. They only looked back for a minute, and they were shocked. Galcian was using The Rains Of Destruction. Fina couldn't believe her eyes, and the rest thought it was going to be the end of the world all over again. All they could do was sit idly and watch this time, as The Rains Of Destruction were started. But to their surprise, nothing had hit them, or any of the islands close. Instead, they had hit Vulua, dead on. They were relieved that they were okay. But then the thought came to their minds.  
  
"Enrique!"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---  
  
Whee! This is fun! I love writing this sooo much! ^__^ And I know you all love reading it! Well. actually, lets put it this way. You better!... Just kidding! I just hope you have as much fun reading it than I've had writing it!  
  
A special thanks to all the reviewers so far, you don't know how much it means to me to have some positive reinforcement. Not to mention pointing out my flaws for future reference.  
  
Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com 


	6. Let's Make History!

They had quickly sailed back to Crescent Isle, full speed. They desperately needed to figure out a way to get to Galcian. They figured that he would go and try to "ask" the other continents to side with him, so as soon as he left Soltis, they were going to attack his ship. But they had to look at reality; they couldn't do it with just The Delfinus and The Claudia (Glider's ship). They needed more firepower if they expected to take on Galcian and his fleet.

"You're right. Damn there's nothing we can do!" Vyse said, slamming his fist against the table in the meeting room.

"I leave you alone for a few days and you're already giving up?"

Everyone looked over and saw, Enrique!

"Enrique!" Everyone said at once.

"Galcian used The Rains Of Destruction on Vulua." Enrique said as Moegi ran into his arms. "Belleza saved my life."

They all looked over at Belleza, a woman who was an Admiral of the Armada fleet.

"I did what I had to for my prince." She said. "And I disagree with all of that unnecessary bloodshed that Galcian caused."

"He killed thousands." Enrique chimed in.

"Hmm, even with Enrique, there's still not a lot we can do." Vyse said, thinking.

"'There's never a time to give up.' Or at least that's what you told me. Have you gone back on your word boy?"

"That voice." Vyse said, looking up. "Drachma!"

Scott looked to see the old man with the bionic arm. He was no longer scared of him now, but still had some great respect for him. Up until now, he didn't even know Drachma's name.

"I'm here to do my part." Drachma said. "I can't just let you handle this all by yourself. And neither could a lot of other people."

Drachma stood at the door, signaling for Vyse to go out and take a look for himself. Vyse got up and walked out the meeting room door. Aika, Fina, Glider, Scott and Drachma followed him. He was amazed to see a variety of airships, One belonging to Gordo, another belonging to Centime, another belonging to Clara, another belonging to Domgio, quite a few Yafutomian ships, another belonging to Dyne, Vyse's father, and lastly, one belonging to Baltor, Vyse's enemy.

"We're here to help. This is our world too!" Centime said.

"They've driven away all my customers!" Gordo said. "I have a personal bone to pick with them."

"It'll be fun!" Clara said.

"I'm out to save the world too." Baltor said. "But don't get the wrong idea! After this I'll come after you again Vyse!"

"This is great!" Vyse said.

"We're awaiting your orders Capitan." Dyne said.

"We can't let Galcian get away with this!" Vyse proclaimed. "He isn't going to take over the world without a fight! Tomorrow we'll start attacking him!"

Everyone responded with a loud "AYE AYE!" and cheered. It was a real moral booster for everyone. It was agreed that the next day, they would take out Galcian at all costs. The whole day was spent preparing, Scott helped Belle with the cannon balls, which eventually became great stacks on every ship. Everyone else prepared previsions and such so the battle wouldn't end early in an upset.

But when night fell, it was the most difficult time for everyone. It was tough for anyone to catch even a wink of sleep they were too excited. But some people were actually scared; scared they wouldn't come back from the fight. That was the case with Aika, Fina and Scott. They were all outside, each in different places. Fina was by the flagpole, Scott was sitting on the edge of the fountain, and Aika was up in front of the meeting room. Vyse couldn't sleep either, and was about to go and think somewhere too, but Belleza stopped him and suggested he talked to Fina and Aika.

So he went to do that. First he went to find Fina, which didn't take long. She was looking out at the sky, most likely thinking to herself.

"Hey." Vyse said, getting her attention.

"Oh, hello Vyse." She replied, looking at him for a bit. "Couldn't sleep either?"

"No, I'm too excited about tomorrow." Vyse said, smiling.

Fina sighed and turned, looking back out into the sky. Something was obviously troubling her. She was scared, Vyse figured. Even he was a little scared, he had made all these new friends, made a lot of discoveries, and even became the Capitan of his own ship. And if the battle didn't go so smoothly tomorrow, it could all be gone.

"Vyse, Ramirez was my friend. He treated me like his sister, and now one of us is going to die tomorrow." Fina said quietly, but loud enough so he could hear. "I would usually believe that I am not strong enough to fight my own friend. But traveling with you has made me much stronger than I was when I first came here. All the sailing with you has made me much braver too, and now I get excited about exploring places. Even the places with monsters."

Vyse just listened; he didn't exactly know what to say at that moment.

"But." Fina said, looking up at the higher sky. "I know that I'll be able to beat him if you're there with me Vyse. When I'm fighting along side you, I feel stronger than I ever was. Vyse, you being there tomorrow will mean a lot to me."

Vyse said nothing, he just smiled, moving closer to her and putting his arm around her. She rested her head against his shoulder, looking rather shy. But she still had a small smile on her face. Vyse was smiling too, knowing he must have done the right thing.

"Vyse." Fina said quietly. "I, kind of like this. Can we stay like this for a little longer?"

They remained like that for another few minutes, and then Fina went back to her room. Vyse then looked around for Aika, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen on ground level. She wasn't in the hanger either, that didn't seem like her. Vyse looked everywhere, and eventually found her out on the ledge by the meeting room. The last place he looked.

"Hey Aika." Vyse said, getting her attention.

Aika looked at him and smiled a bit, "Oh hey Vyse."

"What's the matter? Couldn't sleep?" Vyse asked.

"Nope." Aika replied. "I'm too excited about tomorrow. Well, actually, I'm scared. Heh doesn't seem like me does it?"

"Hey, I'm scared too." Vyse said, turning around and leaning against the rail, looking at her.

"Really? I thought you weren't afraid of anything." She said, still looking out at the red moon.

"Sure I am. I've always been afraid every time we went somewhere, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to finish the adventure or that I'd lose my friends. I mean, we're going to be making history tomorrow, and that doesn't happen all the time."

"You've sailed around the world, gone beyond the sunset and defeated five out of six Gigas. You've already made history."

"Yeah, but the fate of the world is at stake tomorrow. I would wonder what would happen if we lost the battle, but I know we're not going to."

"Hey Vyse, look down there." Aika said with sort of a smirk and pointed down at Scott.

Vyse turned around and leaned against the rail again, looking down at where she was pointing. He saw Scott sitting on the edge of the fountain. He noticed him before, but he didn't want to talk, so Vyse never talked to him. But he blinked as he noticed Belle walking towards Scott. She sat down beside him and looked at him.

"What's the matter?" Belle asked, tilting her head.

Scott was staring at the ground blankly, deep in thought. He only responded with "Couldn't sleep."

"Me neither." She said, looking at the ground too. "I'm just… Scared."

"I'm just worried." Scott said.

"About what?"

"About what would happen tomorrow. If something goes wrong, I could lose everything that I've found recently. I really want to make history, so I can make my family proud."

"I bet they're proud of you already. You just have to go tell them everything you've done."

"That's not easy."

"Why not?"

Scott looked up, leaning back so he could see the red moon. It was the first time he didn't stare at Belle when she was around. A silent tear ran down his cheek.

"They're dead." He said quietly.

"Oh Scott, I'm so sorry." She said, looking sorry for him.

"You don't have to be sorry Belle. It wasn't your fault." He replied.

"What happened then… if it's any of my business?"

"Well…"

Flashback 

_"That's okay son, you'll get it next time." Scott's dad, Jeff, said. "I know you can."_

_Scott smiled up at his father. The nine-year-old boy had just competed in his first tournament. It was with swords, which he liked very much. He really liked them because his father had one; it was a sturdy katana, made with Moonstone. Scott hoped that one-day, he could wield a sword just like his, maybe even that very same one. But he was still very far away from that it seemed. All he had was a dull training sword to make due with._

_They had gotten home that evening, when the sun was just setting. Scott's Mom, Kathy, was starting dinner. Scott sat on his bed, looking at the ceiling, reflecting on his mistakes that resulted in him losing the competition. He looked out the window down at his little brother. He smiled a bit to himself, watching his older brother, James, watch Jason made him feel a little happier then he was before._

_He got up and walked to his window, jumping out of it and landing on his feet outside of the house. He looked around the small village and smiled. It was a small village on a small island, somewhere near the South Ocean. But he blinked as he heard a familiar voice._

_"Hey Scott!" A little girl called out and ran toward him, diving at him and knocking him over._

_"Whoa Belle! You knocked me over!" Scott said as he squirmed under the smaller girl. "Get off me!"_

_"Oops, sorry." Belle said as she stood up and tried to help Scott up._

_Scott just got up by himself, brushing himself off. He laughed a bit and smiled at Belle, and she smiled back._

_"So did you win Scott? Did you kick some butt or what?" She said, bobbing up and down with excitement._

_"No, actually, I lost my second fight." He said, sounding a little depressed._

_Belle stopped bobbing and looked at him, giving him a friendly hug. "That's alright, you'll do it next year!"_

_Scott smiled a bit, returning the hug, but then he heard his mom call him for dinner. He said goodbye to Belle and ran back to his house. He ate his dinner quickly, fighting worked up an appetite, not to mention trying to keep Belle settled down. But it was also tiring, only two hours after he had eaten, he went off to bed._

_At about mid-night, he was awoken by a rumbling noise. At first, he thought it was his stomach, but it got louder and louder in the next few minutes to come. He hid under his covers and waited for it to go away. He figured it was just another storm or gust of wind that came from South Ocean. But when he heard some of the village people yelling and screaming, he immediately shot up and hurried downstairs. He lost his footing at the bottom step and tripped, falling to the floor._

_"Scott!" He heard Belle cry, then he felt like he was being shook._

_"What is it?" Scott grumbled, looking up at Belle. He blinked; she looked very worried about something._

_"Monsters Scott! Monsters are attacking the village!" She cried._

_Scott jumped up to his feet and took Belle's hand, hurrying to the cellar with her. They went through the big wooden doors leading to the cellar and hid there. It was only a few minutes before the screams died down to absolute quiet. But they smelled smoke, as if something was burning. They curiously got up and opened up the cellar doors. They were shocked to see that Scott's house was on fire, along with the rest of the village. Scott knew they needed to be fast, so he turned around and picked Belle up and ran out of the house with her, heading as far away from the village as possible. For the rest of the night, they cried as some rain started._

End Of Flashback 

"After that," Scott said, "I found my father's dead body. His sword wasn't too far away from it, so I took it for myself. At first, I wanted revenge; I wanted all the monsters in the world to pay. But after a while, I just wanted to seem worthy to hold my father's sword. The little girl and I had been taken onto a ship, but I didn't like the ship, so I left to be on my own. I don't remember why I didn't like the ship, but that's how it happened."

After that, they sat in a few moments silence. Time seemed to have stood still for them both as they just stared at the ground in deep thought. Aika and Vyse were watching, wishing they knew what Scott had said.

"Because it was too feminine." Belle said after a few more minutes.

"What?" Scott said, looking at her.

"You didn't like the ship because it was too girly." Belle replied.

"That's right, I remember now!" Scott said, smiling a bit. "It had pink and hearts all over the place. But how did you know?"

Belle turned and looked into his eyes. At that moment, she had remembered everything that happened to her home that long time ago. He still had the same look in his eyes, a bit of happiness, no matter what he was feeling. But she struggled to see it, it was covered you could say. Covered by a barrier, rejecting everyone from seeing it.

Scott blinked, trying to figure out how she could have known about the ship. At that moment, he felt like he had seen her before. He remembered that the little girl's name was Belle, and so was hers. But it had to be a coincidence; it couldn't have been the same little girl.

"You've gotten a lot stronger and braver since then Scott." Belle said. "You're a lot better at handling your father's katana too. I bet you could win that tournament easy, if it were still around."

"No way!" Scott thought. "It isn't, it can't!"

"I was only about seven or eight back then. We were such good friends; I'm amazed I forgot you. You were like a brother to me." Belle said, smiling a bit.

"And you've grown quite a bit too." Scott said. "You've developed into a fine young lady. But you're still a little hyper."

They both laughed a bit and quickly hugged each other in what was supposed to be a friendly hug. But the seconds turned to minutes as they held each other longer and longer. Vyse and Aika smiled. Aika personally knew that something was going on with those two.

"You know," Scott said, stopping the hug for a minute. "Tonight should be one of those nights when you do things you've always wanted to do, just in case you never come back."

"You have something in mind then?" Belle asked, blinking a bit.

"Two things." Scott said. He smiled and looked into her big golden-brown eyes again. Then he took off his glove, and slowly and gently ran his fingers through her hair. "I have something to say, and something to do."

"And, what's that?" Belle asked shyly, blushing lightly, but she made no attempt to look away.

"The past few weeks have been pretty weird." Scott said. "Going around with Vyse, helping Izmael build things, battling monsters. It has all been a very new experience for me. But the one thing I cherish the most is when I woke up on Clara's ship, and saw you."

Belle's cheeks flushed a deeper pink. "Scott..."

"And all that time after that, I was always thinking about you." Scott said as he ran his fingers through her hair again. "And even when you were hired as a gunner, I still thought about you, all the time. And even when I was working, I couldn't take my eyes off you."

He paused for a moment, blushing a bit himself. "I guess what I'm getting at is, well, that I love you."

Then Scott leaned in and kissed her in a warm, romantic embrace. Belle's face was beat red, she felt helpless. Scott moved his hand from her hair, and brought it to rest gently on her cheek. It felt very warm in his hand, due to her blushing.

Vyse and Aika just watched, their mouths hanging open. They didn't really expect that, in fact, it had caught them completely off guard. They looked at each other, and then back at Scott and Belle, who had finally broken their kiss.

"Scott I…" Belle tried to muster up some words, but she was speechless. So she just wrapped her arms around his stomach and rested her head on his shoulder. "I love you too."

Scott smiled and wrapped his arms around her as well, holding her close to him. They sat like that for a few more minutes before they finally decided to head off to bed. They kissed each other goodnight, and went off to their beds.

"Well that was interesting." Vyse said, still looking down at where they were.

Aika smiled sheepishly and took a few steps back. Then she leaned in and kissed Vyse on the cheek. Vyse blinked, caught off guard yet again.

"Well, thanks for your company Vyse." She said, stepping back again. "I should be able to get some sleep now."

Vyse didn't even move, he barely even reached up and rubbed his cheek after Aika had left. He was a bit confused, but decided to go back to his bed as well.

The next morning, everyone woke up bright and early, they were too excited to get the right amount of sleep, and so they were kind of tired. But that wasn't about to stop them; they were in their ships and in the air in no time flat. Scott and Belle had held each other's hand from the time they met in the morning, to the time they were on The Delfinus. And even when Vyse began heading toward Galcian and his fleet, they didn't stop.

"Come on everyone!" Vyse said on the speakers so the rest of the ship could hear. "Let's go make history!"

Everyone replied with a loud, moral boosting "AYE AYE!" And sailed forth by Vyse's lead.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Even though I should feel like a pervert for writing all that kissing stuff, I don't o_o it's late at night, well actually it's almost 10:30, but I'm tired. I guess I write better mushy stuff when I'm tired. Oh well, I was having fun! ^_^

Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com


	7. Galcian's Demise, The Final Battle Begin...

"I still say that the time Clara fired at Glider, and glider fired back was the most romantic!" One of Belle's friends said.  
  
"I agree! Clara is brilliant when it comes to those things!" The other said.  
  
Belle and her friends were having another of their "Clara + Glider" talks. Usually they'd be left to themselves, but Belle was practically attached to Scott's arm. He just sat there, cross-legged, leaning back, holding himself up, and rolling his eyes in the tempo of the conversation.  
  
"When does it end? Please moons let it end!" He thought, tapping his fingers on the deck.  
  
And thankfully, it did end, quite suddenly too. Vyse had called for everyone to get to his or her battle stations. It was time to kick some world dominator butt! Everyone was very excited as they all got to their battle stations. Vyse, Aika, Fina, Scott, Moegi, Enrique, Marco, Glider and Lawrence were all at the bridge, ready to watch the ships burn. And burn them of course.  
  
The battle went in stages sort of. First they battled with a "Mage Ship." They labeled it that for it's extensive use of magic spells. They took it out rather easily though, since their cannons were much stranger than any spell the Mage Ship fired. Next came an Elite Ship. They figured it was that because it was colored black with a red stripe, pretty much Galcian's colors. It was a bit more difficult than the Mage Ship, because it was actually strong, and the crew was pretty smart. They actually tricked Vyse into following them away from Galcian's ship. But it didn't matter much; Vyse still shot it down with relative ease.  
  
They had easily broken through the lines and reached Galcian's ship, The Hydra. It was a huge ship, with cannons lining every side of it. Some were big; some were small, probably main and sub cannons. It literally looked like a flying fortress, in which it's nickname was.  
  
But that didn't stop Vyse from immediately going into battle, focusing most of his attacks on the hull. Using Sacarum from time to time to keep the ship in good condition. But they blinked as the shield of the hull fell off to reveal a giant cannon. It was known as "The Hydra Cannon" but it was still nothing compared to the Moonstone Cannon.  
  
"Vyse, hold on." Scott said, turning to Vyse. "Stop attacking the hull, we'll be right smack dab in front of that big cannon if you do. Try focusing your attacks on the higher spots, like the bridge. We'll do less damage, but that cannon wont be able to do much either."  
  
"Hey, that's a good idea Scott." Vyse said as he increased the altitude.  
  
And he was right; the Hydra Cannon couldn't damage them as much, as they were further away from it. But Scott did like seeing the big green beam it shot, but he knew if it showed up too much, they'd be goners for sure. But they eventually got Galcian to retreat, after firing the Moonstone Cannon many times, along with torpedoes and other cannons. All the while watching their damage and using healing spells to make sure everything held out long enough.  
  
"He's running away!" Aika said. "Do something Vyse!"  
  
"I'm not letting him get away! Not now!" Vyse said as he pursued The Hydra.  
  
They had caught up with Galcian and Vyse, Aika, Fina, Enrique and Scott boarded his ship. Enrique said he'd stay by the entrance and heal Vyse and his party if they needed it. It was like a maze in The Hydra, and since they came in by the engine, it didn't make things any better. It was a while until they reached what they considered to be the deck, or at least a place where they could breathe the fresh air. But even then they had to go back into the ship, and then back out of it again until they reached the bridge. But a big door blocked their path.  
  
"Galcian must be hiding in there." Scott said, his katana already drawn.  
  
"We'll just have to break down the door then, wont we?" Vyse said, readying himself to use a fire spell.  
  
"That will not be necessary." Galcian said, as he opened the door himself and stepped out.  
  
Although he looked rather intimidating with his gigantic sword, they began a battle with him anyways. He was a crafty opponent, and strong too. He'd occasionally use Eternes and knock a few of Vyse's party members out. But they always had a Rislem Crystal ready to bring them back to full valor. They had to implement a good defensive / offensive strategy to fight Galcian. For he always used a move he called "Terminal" on a single person. Which resulted in devastating damage to the target, they would be knocked right out or nearly done in if they weren't braced for it. But Vyse and his party had their own strong moves, such as Pirate's Wrath, and the variety of moves Scott had that he never really named. One of which he would move around his enemy so fast, that he seemed like a blur, giving each side of Galcian at least 7 hits each.  
  
But all those attacks seem futile, so they were forced to use Prophecy. Yet even then Galcian survived, and they were forced to use it several more times before he accepted defeat.  
  
"Not as strong as you thought you were, are you?" Scott said, smirking as he held his blade to Galcian's head.  
  
Galcian just laughed a bit and flipped back, kicking Scott's katana. It never really flew out of his hand, but it caused him to stumble back. Galcian retreated into the bridge, which turned out to be an escape pod.  
  
"I thought he was too arrogant to have an escape pod!" Vyse exclaimed.  
  
The escape pod launched off and headed right back for Soltis. All Vyse, Aika, Fina and Scott could do was watch as he got away. Mentally cursing at Galcian of course. But they were surprised to see Belleza's ship flying right towards Galcian's escape pod, full speed, on a collision course.  
  
They watched in awe as Belleza's ship crashed into the escape pod, causing a big fiery explosion. Both the ship slowly sank downwards, most likely going to hit Old Sky, and be buried in the mud forever. They were actually kind of sad that Belleza did what she did. But they had little time to mourn, so they ran back to The Delphinus and headed straight for Soltis.  
  
The Still couldn't get in; the barrier was still up, preventing all access.  
  
"Damn, we've gotten too far to be stopped by this thing!" Vyse said.  
  
But Ramirez called the rains of destruction again, what continent was targeted was completely beyond Vyse and his party members' knowledge. But whatever it was, it couldn't have been good. They were prepared for the worst, knowing that this could be their last day on earth.  
  
But they were shocked when they looked up to see the Silver Shrine speeding right down towards Soltis.  
  
"Elders, no!" Fina cried out.  
  
But it was to no prevail; the Silver Shrine had already entered the atmosphere, and began to burn up. But it still came crashing down towards Soltis. The Rains Of Destruction shot up towards the Silver Shrine, but it crashed through the beam and showed no signs of slowing. It crashed down upon the barrier and exploded, causing the barrier to break and shatter. They were given access to Soltis, but not a singe trace of the Silver Shrine was left.  
  
They found that Shrine Island fit right into Soltis, and that they could use it as an entry point. So they docked there and ran as deep into the shrine as they could. They got way down to the spot where Aika and Vyse had defeated a sentinel way back when. Through a door near it, they found a path leading right into Soltis.  
  
Going through the blasted maze that Soltis was, they had finally reached Zelos's chamber, where Ramirez was. He seemed enraged and depressed at the same time, on his hands and knees in the center of the room.  
  
"Why?" Ramirez said. "Why did you kill him?"  
  
Vyse didn't respond, he just watched Ramirez, it seemed that he was breaking down.  
  
"He didn't deserve to die!" Ramirez cried, getting to his feet. "He was going to recreate the world in a better image! But you, you fools had to kill him! Now the world is left to be the way it was before, and drive itself into destruction all over again! You'll not get away with this. You shall pay!"  
  
Ramirez drew his sword, and Vyse wasted little time starting yet another battle. It seemed that Ramirez was blinded with rage and depression, making him a lot weaker than he was the first time around. But who knows? Maybe Vyse and his party had gotten stronger. Ramirez had a bundle of new spells, one of which was just like one of Fina's. Others were "Sliver Eclipse" and "Tundra." All of the attacks were devastating, and it was hard to press on after taking damage from any of them. But again, Vyse and Scott had used their strongest attacks against their foe, while Aika and Fina healed the party and defended. This time they actually got by without using Prophecy, which was surprising to them.  
  
But Ramirez wasn't about to let things go that easily. He was bent on seeing Vyse and all his friends, and even the world die. He stepped back until he was under Zelos.  
  
"You think you've won, don't you?" Ramirez asked, rhetorically. "But it's only just beginning. There's no way even Vyse could stand up against the Sliver Gigas. I have no choice, but I'll have to sacrifice my life to Zelos in order to bring about your demise."  
  
He then spoke straight to Zelos. "Zelos, the Silver Gigas! I sacrifice my life to you, in order to destroy the world!"  
  
"Ramirez don't!" Fina cried. "You'll die!"  
  
"The Ramirez you knew is already dead Fina." He said as he disappeared in a red beam, going into Zelos.  
  
The whole island began to rumble and the chamber began to fall apart as Zelos began to get bigger and bigger. Vyse took Fina's hand and ran back towards The Delphinus while Aika and Scott followed. They boarded The Delphinus and immediately made their way into the sky. At that time, Zelos had gotten bigger than Soltis, and crashed out of it, hovering in the air.  
  
"That thing is huge!" Aika said.  
  
"How are we supposed to defeat a monstrosity like that?" Scott asked.  
  
"Zelos is not done forming." Fina said. "If we were to attack it now, then we may have a chance."  
  
"Alright, battle stations everyone! It's time to take this thing out once and for all!" Vyse proclaimed as they all ran to the bridge.  
  
Zelos had a part that seemed like an eye, a center of the sphere that had all the Moon Crystals in it. They figured it was a good weak-point, so they attacked it with everything they had. Every cannon and torpedo they could fire was fired. Even the Moonstone Cannon was fired occasionally. They were constantly seeing to the ship, it was damaged greatly by whichever spell Zelos used. And Zelos, having every Moon Crystal at his disposal, could use any spell in existence.  
  
But Zelos suddenly began to change shape, and he solidified and gained a few rings around himself. Yet he still wasn't finished forming, so Vyse pulled back so he could heal. Even though that meant not using the Moonstone Cannon as much, he needed to save up energy for it anyways.  
  
They fired everything they had at Zelos again until he began to change form again. This time losing most of its outer shell was lost and it had what appeared to be claws. It still kept that centerpiece with all of the Moon Crystals, and those rings it formed the last time it changed shape.  
  
"That's its final stage." Fina said.  
  
"Well what are we waiting for? I'm too excited, finish it off!" Scott said, having to grab hold of something.  
  
"Now I see why he likes Belle so much." Vyse mumbled under his breath. "They're exactly alike in some ways."  
  
"Alright then, lets finish this!" He then exclaimed.  
  
They poured in every bit of everything they could get into each cannon. Firing the Moonstone Cannon in combination to the sub cannons and the torpedoes. It only took a few minutes before Zelos's claws began to fall off one by one. All until the last one fell off. Then the world began to rumble, and Zelos exploded.  
  
Vyse, Aika, Fina and Scott ran out to the deck and looked at the exact spot where Zelos once was. The gray clouds began to part in some places, and rays of sunshine came through the openings. It really felt peaceful at that moment in time, and they wished the world would remain that way.  
  
"It's finally over." Fina said calm and relieved.  
  
"Yeah, but now what?" Vyse asked, blinking a few times.  
  
"I have no idea." Scott said, looking out at the sunrays.  
  
"Maybe we could all go home now!" Aika said, smiling.  
  
"Not so easy for some of us." Scott said, pointing to himself and Fina.  
  
"Oh yeah, I forgot." Aika said, sounding a little less happy.  
  
But then they heard a big crash behind them, and they looked back to see a giant silver sphere landed on the deck, denting it and the rail. They blinked, wondering if it was a good thing, or a bad thing. But they all had a feeling that the peace that they just felt was too good to last. And they were right, things seemed to get a little bleak again as the sphere cracked like an egg. And out of it emerged Ramirez, but he seemed to be attached to a silver creature of sorts.  
  
"You will die!" He exclaimed as he rushed Vyse and his party.  
  
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Phew all done this chapter, getting close to the end people, bare with me readers!  
  
Got any questions or comments? E-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com 


	8. Live Long In Prosper

Ramirez charged at Scott and the silver creature grabbed him and picked him up.  
  
"Die." Ramirez said, then yelled in rage as his eyes turned read and a bunch of tentacle-like things burst out of his back.  
  
The tentacle things went around Ramirez and lunged themselves at Scott. They jabbed into him one by one, but very quickly. Then Ramirez held Scott in front of him and murmured, "Kill." And the creature grinned and opened its mouth, firing a kind of beam at Scott, hitting him dead on.  
  
"Can't leave, Belle." Scott mumbled as he fell unconscious in the creature's hand.  
  
The creature threw him aside, making him slide on the deck and almost fall off the side. He would have too, if Aika didn't stop him from doing so. Vyse got furious and used Pirate's Wrath on Ramirez, but it didn't work out as well as he planned. In face, it didn't hurt him that much at all. Aika used a Rislem crystal on Scott, getting him back to 100%, while Fina just stayed ready for whatever Ramirez was going to do.  
  
Ramirez then created a hole, and Vyse fell through it. Falling out in front of Ramirez, held in the air by strings. Vyse heard him say, "Fire" and as if he was out of his own control, Vyse used "Cutlass Fury" on Aika.  
  
It hurt, but not too much. Ramirez seemed to have a few new tricks up his sleeve. But they weren't a big improvement. They had just used Prophecy on him a few times, and he fell like a sack of potatoes.  
  
"He tried to kill us a third time? Geez, this guy is as sharp as a sack of wet mud." Scott said to himself.  
  
"Damn you!" Ramirez cried as him and the creature sort of imploded. All that was left was the piece of Silver Moon Crystal.  
  
"Fina." Vyse said, getting her attention. "We sailors have a kind of tradition that great sailors should be buried at sea. Would you mind if we did the same to Ramirez?"  
  
"No, go right ahead Vyse." She said, smiling a bit.  
  
Vyse picked up the Silver Moon Crystal and walked over to the edge of the deck, looking out into the sky. It seemed much brighter out, as more sun had broke free of the clouds. He smiled a bit, looking back at the Moon Crystal.  
  
"Rest in peace Ramirez." Vyse said as he threw it as far as he could into the sky below.  
  
They all sighed in relief and turned around to see Glider, Drachma and Enrique.  
  
"Good job Vyse." Glider said. "You managed to save the world."  
  
"That was some good piloting. I'm proud of you boy." Drachma said.  
  
"Heh well, thanks." Vyse said, rubbing the back of his head. "I couldn't have done it without all of you. You helped me so much, I couldn't begin to guess how to thank you."  
  
"Hey what about us!" He heard Clara call out to him.  
  
Vyse looked up to see all of his friends' ships floating above them. He was happy to see that they all made it out of the fight safely. He smiled and gave them the thumbs up.  
  
"Sorry guys!" Vyse said. "I didn't know you were up there the hole time!"  
  
"How could you forget about us?" Clara said. "We just helped you save the world!"  
  
"Calm down Clara." Centime said. "Just be happy that it's all over now."  
  
"Son, I'd be honored for you to call me Dad from now on." Dyne said.  
  
"All this fighting got my appetite worked up!" Gordo said. "When can we get a bite to eat around here?"  
  
"I agree with the big guy." Baltor said. "I'm starvin'! We should have a feast!"  
  
"Wow, I can't believe I'm actually agreeing with Baltor!" Aika said.  
  
"I guess that makes two of us." Scott mumbled.  
  
"Alright everyone!" Vyse proclaimed. "Let's go back to Crescent Isle and have the biggest feast in history!"  
  
Of course, the others responded with a gleeful, loud "AYE AYE!" And then they all headed back to the base for some grub. But Enrique and Moegi had something else planed as well. It came as no surprise to the others that they decided to get married. Glider said that he was going to go back to his ship; his crew must have been going crazy without him. Besides, he still had to find "the good life." Drachma said that he was going to become a fisherman again. Clara, Centime, Gordo, Baltor and Dyne were going to move on with their lives. But Vyse, Scott, Aika and Fina had no idea what they were going to do, nor did their crewmembers. But they decided to figure it out later.  
  
The feast was extraordinary. Everyone was celebrating and sharing tales of their adventures. From when Vyse and Aika first saved Fina from the Vuluans, right up to when they had gotten their final Moon Crystal. It was a day that would never leave any of their minds.  
  
After that, Vyse saw his friends and family good-bye. He, Aika, Fina and Scott had decided to stay on Crescent Isle and keep sailing the skies for new adventures. They were still young, who knows what kind of trouble they could get themselves into? Most of their crewmates moved on to find other jobs. Osmar went back to Nasrad and set up a shop and it had been said that Lawrence was seen around Vulua looking for his next job for instance. Most of the crewmembers resumed their normal lives, knowing they could live the, peacefully. All except Belle, she decided to stay with Scott and explore more of the world if she could.  
  
Enrique and Moegi went back to Vulua as Emperor and Empress, and gathered up the survivors to begin rebuilding it into a new land, where everyone was equal. Drachma soon died after saving the world as a happy fisherman. Glider and his crew resumed their search for "the good life", while still avoiding Clara of course. Centime had seen his 4 adopted leave to go fulfill their dreams, while at the same time took in 7 other kids. Gordo resumed his business running his Bistro, while Baltor resumed trying to find a way to finally defeat Vyse.  
  
Speaking of Vyse, he, Aika, Fina, Scott and Belle had taken a completely new ship, other than The Delfinus. They hadn't named it just then, for they had just got it. It looked a lot like The Albatross, but with Fina's flag design hoisted. Fina had changed her look from the clothing of a Silvite, to something more like an Air Pirate. Cupil had even got a pirate's hat and an eye-patch, with a fake mustache to boot too.  
  
It wasn't long until they settled into their new ship. Scott and Belle were out on the deck, looking out into the sky, and Belle walked over to him and stood beside him. He put one arm around her shoulders and they both smiled.  
  
"How do you think thing's will be now that you and Vyse saved the world?" Belle asked.  
  
"A lot better now." Scott replied.  
  
"Who out of Aika and Fina do you think Vyse will go for?" Belle asked again, looking up at Scott with a smile.  
  
He laughed, "Let's not get in to that." He said as he held her closer. "Some things are better off left alone."  
  
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And that's the end of my story! ^_^ I hope you all enjoyed it! I hope to be making a sequel soon. Please review if you've read it all, I'd really appreciate it!  
  
You know the drill. Anything to say, e-mail me at Luigi_640@hotmail.com 


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